Parsifal

Motif 03: Faith

German name: Glaubensthema


Musical example: Motif 03 - Faith
Amfortas' vision - Franz Stassen Above: Amfortas' vision, oil painting by Franz Stassen.

Soundbytes Faith (ogg format)

The example shows the Faith motif as it first appears, on horns and trumpets, in the prelude to the first act (bars 44-46). It is then extended into a long sequence. Later the Faith motif appears in the first and last acts, and just once in the second act (Doch wer erkennt ihn klar und hell, des einz'gen Heiles wahren Quell?).

It returns in a modified form in connection with Amfortas' vision, and it is alluded to when the knights sing Zum letzten Liebesmahle .... It could be argued that this motif is developed from the last phrase of the Grundthema (motif 1, fragment C).

Several subsidiary motives are derived from Faith, notably those of Angels, Titurel and Innocence.

References: von Wolzogen ex.3 p.25, Lorenz p.14, Kufferath ex.4 p.228, Lavignac p.444, Newman ex.4-5, ENO ex.11, 13-15, Bauer p.33.

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